Beelzebubs-Tales-to-His-Grandson-by-G-I-Gurdjieff

" 'The beneficial results of the customs created by the Great Moses are stillvisible today." 'For instance, concerning the custom of circumcision, I, being a gooddiagnostician and able to tell from one glance at a man's face whatdisharmony there is in his organism, can safely say that this terrible children'sdisease of "onanism" is scarcely ever found among those children upon whomthis rite has been performed, whereas the children whose parents fail toobserve this custom are almost all subject to it.'Certain of those who are not subjected to the rite of circumcision doescape this disease of 'onanism," but these rare exceptions are the children ofparents who are cultured in the full sense of the word, and who understandclearly that the future normal mentation of their children depends exclusivelyupon whether they do or do not suffer from this disease in their childhood oryouth." 'Such cultured parents know full well that if their children experience intheir nervous system the sensation of the climax of what is called the"ooamonooanossnian process" even once before they reach maturity, they willnever be fully capable of normal mentation when they become adult, andhence these parents always consider it their first and chief duty toward theirchildren to educate them in this respect." 'Unlike most contemporary parents, they do not consider that theeducation of children consists in badgering them to learn by rote as muchpoetry as possible, composed by "moordoortenist psychopaths," or in teachingthem to shake hands politely with their friends and acquaintances, for inkeeping with the notions of people of our times, unfortunately it is these"accomplishments" which constitute the whole education of children today." 'And so, my dear, very depraved, but nevertheless likable young man